🔍 Lessons from a High-Frequency PCB Challenge: A Real-World Case
Daisy Jiang
Global Business Development Manager in Abiscircuits professional in PCB&PCBA field Amazing quality assurance Reputation First Excellent service
Not long ago, we worked on a high-frequency PCB project for a European client developing radar modules operating at 24GHz.
The initial challenges they faced were quite familiar in this field:
Maintaining consistent impedance across the board
Fluctuations in dielectric properties (Dk/Df) of the material
Hole-wall quality in plated through holes
Delamination risks during thermal cycling
These issues may seem technical, but they can make or break performance in high-speed communication or radar systems. And solving them isn’t just about good equipment — it’s about process control, understanding materials, and cross-functional communication.
Here’s what we learned and applied: ✔️ Careful material selection and pairing, especially when using hybrid materials like Rogers + FR4, plays a critical role in controlling impedance and stability. ✔️ Drilling precision and surface treatment techniques directly affect loss performance and reliability. ✔️ Introducing in-line impedance testing and VNA signal verification during production gave us early insights before final QA.
The result: the boards passed full validation, and the product went smoothly into system-level testing without redesign or delay.
Every project like this reminds us: 📌 High-frequency boards demand more than technical compliance — they require collaboration, feedback loops, and a lot of listening between the customer and the engineering team.
We're continuously learning from these cases. If you're working on similar challenges or want to exchange ideas, I’d be glad to connect.
#HighFrequencyPCB #SignalIntegrity #RFDesign #PCBManufacturing #EngineeringInsights #HardwareDesign #PCBA #ImpedanceControl
Aspiring RF Engineer (Be it IC Design, Signal Integrity, Antenna, PCB Design or RF Test) | Antenna, LNA & Filter Design | Signal Integrity | Ph.D. in ECE | Actively Seeking Full-Time Roles
3wGreat breakdown of real-world challenges in high-frequency PCB design, especially at 24 GHz, where even minor process variations can impact system performance. Your points on material pairing and in-line verification really resonate. Thanks for sharing these practical insights!